Cover lifting apparatus



Jan- 31, 1967 J. D. SHULTZ ETAL 3,301,103

COVER LIFTING APPARATUS l Filed May 13, 1965 EVS.

United States Patent O 3,301,103 CVER LIFTING APPARATUS .lames Donald Shultz, Rte. 4, and Robert Frank Wells, 1921 Kentucky, both of Lawrence, Kans. 66044 Filed May 13, 1965, Ser. No. 455,396 11 Claims. (Cl. til-3.32)

This invention relates to the opening of closed receptacles and, more particularly, to apparatus for lifting the covers or lids from institutional containers.

Institutional containers are well-known for carrying and storing various foodstuffs in large volumes such as shortening, cookies, crackers and the like, such containers -usually being circular, having a diameter of at least 12 to 13 inches, and being of a certain height, depending upon its contents. The lid of such a container generally has a continuous, beaded flange which frictionally engages the upper, outer circular periphery of the container wall to close the container and to keep it airtight, whereby its contents are kept as fresh as possible while being transported or stored.

Heretofore, it has generally been necessary to open containers of this type by hand. This is accomplished by placing the fingers of one hand beneath the bead of the flange on the lid to apply an upward force to the bead Whiie the other hand frictionally engages the container to hold it against movement as the lid is lifted. Since the ange is usually inflexible, the lid can be lifted only a small distance at any one location and the fingers have to be moved from place-to-place along the underside of the bead to successively apply upward forces to the bead at the various locations until the flange is no longer in frictional engagement with the container. Considerable time and effort is expended to accomplish this task because not only is the container unwieldy due to its relatively large diameter, -but also its usually smooth finish renders it diicult to hold in a stationary position during the lid-lifting operation. Thus, it cannot be easily held against movement as the ngers pry the lid upwardly. Also, the lifting of the lid sometimes causes a partial vacuum in the container and, as a result, the lid may return to its initial disposition if the upward forces applied thereto are even slightly relaxed.

The present invention overcomes the problem associated with opening institutional containers or the like by providing apparatus of improved construction for gripping such a container and readily lifting the lid therefrom as the same is gripped or held stationary. The time and effort required to perform this task is greatly minimized and the structure of the container and its lid remains intact so that they may be reused. Thus, the container will continue to be airtight to preserve its contents after the lid has been once again placed thereon in closing relationship to its open top.

It is, therefore, the primary object of this invention to provide apparatus of improved construction which can be utilized by a single individual for gripping an institutional container and for lifting the lid therefrom while the container is being gripped and thereby held in a stationary position, whereby the container may be opened in a minimum of time an-d with a minimum expenditure of effort on the part of the user, and the container and lid remain intact so that they may be used over and over again.

Anther object of the present invention is the provision of apparatus of the type described which is adjustable so that it can be used for lifting the lids from institutional cans of different sizes, notwithstanding the fact that the container portion thereof is gripped and held in place as the lid is removed therefrom.

Yet another object of this invention isy the provision .'.illLlBy Patented Jan. 31, 1967 ICC of an improved container-holding device wherein the container is positioned on a baseplate and forced against an abutment carried on the baseplate by a treadle, whereby the container is gripped by the treadle and abutment and held against movement relative to the baseplate to facilitate the removal of the lid from its open top.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a lid-lifting device of improved construction for use with apparatus of the type described wherein the device has a pair of hooks depending from a bar and adapted to engage the underside of the flange of the lid on an open top container, such as an institutional container or the like, whereby an upward force on the bar will cause the hooks to apply upward forces to the ange of the lid and thereby separate the lid from the container to, in turn, expose the open top of the later.

In summary, the present invention comprises a base upon which a can is held in position by treadle means coacting with the can to urge the same downwardly and into gripping engagement with an abutment provided on the base. A lifting bar having hooks or the like engages the lid of the can for pulling the lid upwardly, which upward movement is opposed by the downward force applied through the treadle. In the preferable form of the invention, the treadle is adjustably mounted by very simple means which inherently provides the necessary swinging action, there also being biasing means to normally urge the treadle away from the can.

In the drawing:

FIGURE l is a side elevational view of the apparatus shown with a circular, open top container and its lid, the parts of the apparatus being in their operative dispositions prior to the removal of the lid from the container;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the lid-lifting component forming a part of the apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the container gripping component also forming a part of the apparatus, the disposition of a container being shown in dashed lines; and

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4 4 of FIG. 1.

Cover or lid-lifting apparatus 10 includes a containergripping component 12, and a lid or cover-removing component 14 which cooperates with component 12 to lift the lid or cover 16 from an open top container 18 when the lastter is gripped by component 12 and held against movement with respect thereto.

Apparatus 10 is especially suitable for use in removing the lids from institutional containers, and for purposes of illustration herein, container 18 is presumed to be the type of container wherein the continuous flange 20 of lid 16 frictionally engages the upper, outer peripheral surface of container 18 when lid 16 closes the open top thereof. A continuous bead 22 is rigid to the lowermost edge of flange 20, and it has been necessary in the past for the ngers of the hand to apply upward forces to bead 22 at different locations thereon to progressively lift lid 16 from container 18.

Component 12 includes a baseplate 24 having an upper surface 26 and is provided with a pair of L-shaped legs 23 rigid thereto at opposed extremities 30 and 32 thereof respectively. Each leg has a number of holes 34 for receiving screw fasteners or the like whereby plate 24 may be rigidly secured to a suporting surface such as a oor or a table. A web 36 secured in any suitable manner to the lower surface 38 of plate 24 and spanning the distance between legs 28 provides structural rigidity for' plate 24.

A pair of transversely L-shaped members 40 are secured to upper Isurface 26 adjacent extremity 30. Each member 40 has an arcuate edge 42 spaced above upper surface 26 for engaging the outer periphery of `container 18 when the latter is supported in the dashed-line position of FIG. 3 on upper surface 26. Members 40, therefore, provide an abutment against which container 18 is forced by a treadle 44 pivotally mounted yon baseplate 24 adjacent to extremity 32 thereof.

Treadle 44 is in the nature of a flat plate 46 and has an arcuate, container-engaging edge 48 at one end thereof. A pair of spaced, substantially L-shaped finge-rs 50 are integral with treadle 44 adjacent to the opposite end thereof, fingers 50 being received within an aligned pair of openings 52 extending through baseplate 24 as shown in FIGS. l and 3. Plate 24 is provided with two rows of openings 52, there being an opening 52 in one row aligned with a respective opening 52 in the other row. Thus, the effective distance between members 40 and treadle 44 may be va-ried. If desired, baseplate 24 could be provided with a number of spaced slots instead of aligned openings 52. In this case, treadle 44 would be provided with a tongue or extension releasably received in any one of such slots to couple treadle 44 to baseplate 24.

Fingers 50 are loosely received within a respective pair of openings 52 to permit pivoting of treadle 44 about a generally horizontal axis passing through fingers 5t). As shown in FIG. 2, treadle 44 is movable between the fullline position and the dashed-line position. In the dashedline position, edge 48- engages the outer surface of container 18 and forces the latter into tight engagement with edges 42 of members 40, whereby container 18 is held against movement relative to baseplate 24. A coil spring 54 is disposed between upper surface 26 and treadle 44 to bias the latter upwardly, whereby edge 48 is biased in a direction away from container 18. Thus, treadle 44 will return to the full-line position of FIG. 1 from the dashedline position thereof after a downwardly directed force exerted thereon has been removed. Spring 54 is secure-d to treadle 44 in any suitable manner so as to be movable therewith when lingers 50 are placed in different openings 52.

Component 14 includes a bar 56 having a number of holes 58 therethrough adjacent one of its ends. A pair of hooks 60 and 62 are mounted on bar 56 intermediate the ends thereof and are disposed in depending relationship with respect thereto. Hook 60 is yrigidly secured to bar 56; whereas, hook 62 has a fastener 64 which is received in any one of the holes 58 to pivotally mount hook 62 on bar 56. As shown in FIG. 2, fastener 64 has a split post 66 formed of resilient material, whereby hook 62 is releasably retained on bar 56.

The lower hook portions of hooks 60 and 62 are adapted to engage the underside of bead 22 so that upward forces applied to the end of bar 56 will lift lid 16 with respect to container 18 as the latter is gripped and held in a stationary position by members 40 and treadle 44. The adjustability of hook 62 permits component 14 t-o be used with lids of different diameters.

In use, a container 18 to be opened is placed on the upper surface 26 of baseplate 24, it being assumed that the latter is fixed to a supporting surface by screws or the like extending through holes 34 and into the supporting surface. The user of apparatus then steps on treadle I44 to cause edge 48 to engage the outer peripheral suriface of container 18 and to force the latter into tight engagement with edges 42 of members 40. Treadle 44 will :thus assume the dashed-line position of FIG. l. By this means, container 18 is effectively gripped adjacent to its bottom and it is held against movement relative to basefplate 24.

Bar 56 is then positioned above lid 16 with hook 60 beneath bead 22. Hook 62 is disposed so that, when it is in a vertical disposition las shown in FIG. 1 its hook portion will also engage the underside of bead 22. As container 18 is gripped, lid 16 is lifted therefrom by the application of upward forces to the end of bar 56. A single individual can perform both steps in the operation of apparatus 10 by simultaneously lstepping on treadle 44 and lifting upwardly O11 th @nds of bar 56. It may be necessary to rotate bar 56 through a small angle about a vertical axis coincident with the vertical axis of container 18 in order to effectively remove lid 16 therefrom. However, such rotational movement of bar 56 will not cause the user of aparatus 10 to remove his foot from treadle 44.

Components 12 and 14 therefore, provide a unit for effectively separating lid 16 from container 18 as the latter is held against movement. Neither of these components will be damaged by the holding and lifting actions of components 12 and 14. Thus, container 18 and its lid 16 may be used Aover and over again and the fiange 20 of lid 16 will continue to Iprovide an -airtight seal for lid 16 at all times when the lid covers the open top of container 18.

Container 18 may be provided with a bead 68 adjacent its bottom, and container 18 may be lifted slightly as upward forces are applied to bead 22 by hooks 60 and 62. However, bead 68 will engage members 40 and treadle 44 and will be retained thereby against further upward movement. Thus, after lid 16 has been removed from the container, the latter will rest upon surface 26, and treadle 44 will return to the full-line position of FIG. 1 under the infiuence of spring 54 when the foot of the user is removed from treadle 44. Otherwise, it may be necessary for the user to manually lift treadle 44 out of frictional engagement with container 18.

Although the use of apparatus 1t) has been illustrated and described with respect to `a circular, institutional container, it is clear that the concepts of the present invention may be utilized with other types of containers and containers of different sizes wherein it is required to remove a lid from frictional engagement with the container without damaging the structure of either the container or the lid.

Components 12 and 14 may be made of any suitable material such as metal, plastic Ior the like. Moreover, a fastener other than fastener 64 may be utilized in pivotally mounting hook 62 on bar 56. In addition, other parts comprising apparatus 10 may be modified without departing from the scope of the invention as delineated by the claims appended hereto.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus for lifting a lid closing the open top of a container with the lid having a continuous side flange frictionally engaging the outer lperiphery of the container at the upper extremity thereof, said apparatus comprising:

a baseplate adapted to be secured against movement and having an upper, generally at surface for supporting said container;

a pair of spaced, rigid members secured to and extending upwardly from said upper surface of the plate, said members being disposed adjacent to one side of the container and being engageable therewith when the container is supported on said upper surface;

a treadle having a pair of .spaced fingers and a container-engaging edge spaced from said fingers, said plate having a row of openings therethrough for each finger of said treadle respectively, the rows of openings being substantially parallel with each other and disposed adjacent to the side of said container opposite to said one side thereof when the container is supported on said upper surface, the openings in one row being aligned with respective openings in the other row, said fingers of the treadle being loosely received within a pair of aligned openings to permit pivotal movement of said treadle relative to said plate, said treadle being movable through a distance sufficient to shift said edge thereof into engagement with said opposite side of the container and to force said one side of the same into tight engagement with said members, whereby the container is gripped and held against movement relative to said plate;

a bar disposed above the lid of said container and provided With a plurality of longitudinally spaced holes therethrough; and

a pair of hooks depending from said bar, one of the hooks being rigid to the bar, the other hook having a fastener rotatably receivable in any one of said holes to rotatably mount and thereby adjustably connect said other hook to the bar, said hooks being releasably engageable with th'e underside of the flange of said lid at diametrically opposed locations thereon for lifting the lid as the container is held against movement relative to said plate by said members and said treadle.

2. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1t), wherein is provided a coil spring between said plate and said treadle for biasing the latter upwardly and thereby away from said container on the plate, each of said members having an arcuate, container-engaging edge, said edge of said treadle being arcuate.

3. Apparatus for lifting a lid closing the open top of a container with the lid having a continuous side ange frictionally engaging the outer periphery of the container at the upper extremity thereof, said apparatus comprising:

a baseplate adapted to be secured against movement and having an upper, generally flat surface for supporting said container;

a pair of spaced, rigid members secured to and extenda treadle having an extension and a container-engaging edge spaced from said extension, said plate having a row of openings therethrough for the extension, the row of openings being disposed adjacent to the side of said container opposite to said one side thereof when the container is supported on said upper surface, said extension of the treadle being loosely rel ceived within a corresponding opening to permit pivotal movement of said treadle relative to said plate, said treadle being movable through a distance suicient to shift said edge thereof into engagement with said opposite side of the container and to force said one side of the same into tight engagement with said members, whereby the container is gripped and held against movement relative to said plate; bar disposed above the lid of said container and provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced holes therethrough; and

a pair `of hooks depending from said bar, one of the 4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3, and means biasing said treadle in a direction away from the container when the latter is supported by the base.

5. Apparatus for lifting a lid closing the open top of 65 a container with the lid having a continuous side flange frictionally engaging the outer periphery of the container at the upper extremity thereof, said apparatus comprising:

means engageable with the flange of the lid on the container for lifting the lid;

a baseplate adapted to be secured against movement and having an upper surface for supporting said container;

an abutment secured to and extending upwardly from said upper surface of the plate, said abutment being disposed adjacent to one side of the container and being engageable therewith when the container is supported on said upper surface;

a treadle presenting a pair of opposed ends; and mounting means pivotally connecting one end of said 6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, and means biasing said treadle in a direction away from the container when the latter is supported by the beam.

7. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, said mounting means including shiftable means adjustably mounting said treadle on the base at any one of a number of radially spaced positions with respect to the can.

8. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, said mounting means including an extension on the treadle, the base being provided with an opening therethrough for the extension, said extension being loosely received within the opening to permit said swinging movement of the treadle relative to the plate.

9. Apparatus as set forth in claim 8, there being a row of said openings, said row extending radially of the can, said extension being swingably received in any one of the openings to accommodate varying diameters of cans.

10. Apparatus as set forth in claim 5, wherein said lifting means includes a bar and a pair of spaced, flangeengaging hooks carried by and extending laterally from the bar.

11. Apparatus as set forth in claim 10, wherein one of said hooks is adjustably mounted on said bar, whereby the distance between the hooks may be varied.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 430,475 6/1890 Hubbard 269--158 661,322 1l/1900 Ranz 269-135 1,550,827 8/1925 Lauber 81-3.32 1,556,645 10/ 1925 Stoney et al. 294-81 X 1,849,364 3/1932 Clark 294-l6 2,199,516 5/1940 Yeatts 8l-3.32 2,340,330 2/1944 Kipper 8 l-3.32 2,554,948 5/1951 Kiefer fil-3.32 2,566,598 9/1951 Castner 81-3.32

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

JAMES L. JONES, IR., Examiner, 

3. APPARATUS FOR LIFTING A LID CLOSING THE OPEN TOP OF A CONTAINER WITH THE LID HAVING A CONTINUOUS SIDE FLANGE FRICTIONALLY ENGAGING THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF THE CONTAINER AT THE UPPER EXTREMITY THEREOF, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING: A BASEPLATE ADAPTED TO BE SECURED AGAINST MOVEMENT AND HAVING AN UPPER, GENERALLY FLAT SURFACE FOR SUPPORTING SAID CONTAINER; A PAIR OF SPACED, RIGID MEMBERS SECURED TO AND EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM SAID UPPER SURFACE OF THE PLATE, SAID MEMBERS BEING DISPOSED ADJACENT TO ONE SIDE OF THE CONTAINER AND BEING ENGAGEABLE THEREWITH WHEN THE CONTAINER IS SUPPORTED ON SAID UPPER SURFACE; A TREADLE HAVING AN EXTENSION AND A CONTAINER-ENGAGING EDGE SPACED FROM SAID EXTENSION, SAID PLATE HAVING A ROW OF OPENINGS THERETHROUGH FOR THE EXTENSION, THE ROW OF OPENINGS BEING DISPOSED ADJACENT TO THE SIDE OF SAID CONTAINER OPPOSITE TO SAID ONE SIDE THEREOF WHEN THE CONTAINER IS SUPPORTED ON SAID UPPER SURFACE, SAID EXTENSION OF THE TREADLE BEING LOOSELY RECEIVED WITHIN A CORRESPONDING OPENING TO PERMIT PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF SAID TREADLE RELATIVE TO SAID PLATE, SAID TREADLE BEING MOVABLE THROUGH A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT TO SHIFT SAID EDGE THEREOF INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE CONTAINER AND TO FORCE SAID ONE SIDE OF THE SAME INTO TIGHT ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID MEMBERS, WHEREBY THE CONTAINER IS GRIPPED AND HELD AGAINST MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID PLATE; A BAR DISPOSED ABOVE THE LID OF SAID CONTAINER AND PROVIDED WITH A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY SPACED HOLES THERETHROUGH; AND A PAIR OF HOOKS DEPENDING FROM SAID BAR, ONE OF THE HOOKS HAVING MEANS SECURING IT TO THE BAR, THE OTHER HOOK HAVING A FASTENER ROTATABLY RECEIVABLE IN ANY ONE OF SAID HOLES TO ROTATABLY MOUNT AND THEREBY ADJUSTABLY CONNECT SAID OTHER HOOK TO THE BAR, SAID HOOKS BEING RELEASABLY ENGAGEABLE WITH THE UNDERSIDE OF THE FLANGE OF SAID LID AT DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED LOCATIONS THEREON FOR LIFTING THE LID AS THE CONTAINER IS HELD AGAINST MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO SAID PLATE BY SAID MEMBERS AND SAID TREADLE. 